


Child's Play

by musesmistress



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-14
Updated: 2013-02-14
Packaged: 2017-11-29 06:16:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,051
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/683782
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/musesmistress/pseuds/musesmistress
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A tip off from the Genii turns into a learning curve for Ronon.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Child's Play

He knew these darts, they were familiar to him, but he couldn’t get a good look at them in order to figure out which Wraith they belonged to. Something the Atlanteans had only recently realised was that the Wraith marked their darts to separate them from other hives.

The one thing he did know, was that they needed to get out of the open, they had been on the other side of an abandoned city to the gate and as Rodney McKay was currently reminding them as he panted, they had parked the jumper gate side just before the city arches.

The corn fields ahead would give them a moment’s reprieve and he saw it as his opportunity to get a better look at the ships. He ducked in between the tall stems and turned back to shoot at the closest dart as it attempted to capture Teyla and suddenly realised who was here.

He pushed off quickly following the group and catching up to Sheppard with a few easy strides.

“They’re after me,” he declared, “they’re the ones I was running from.”

Without another word he turned and pushed though the corn. He could hear John calling for him, but he carried on, he could lead the Wraith away from the rest and give them a chance to get to the cloaked ship.

He entered the city several feet away from the others and turned to create a bigger distance. He ran the corridors of the city aware of the foot soldiers following him and fact that he needed to find a place to hide for a few minutes rest.

He turned another corridor crossing alongside the center square and ducked into an open tunnel. He pushed the hatch closed and sat silently.

The footsteps he expected to hear didn’t come, the silence was replaced by something else; something Ronon never expected to hear in a city so long abandoned, especially since Rodney had said there were no life signs. The whimpering sound came again and then paused to sniff and cough before the sobbing began and sounded as if it came from a child.

Considering the noise it was making Ronon knew the Wraith would be drawn by the cries and he turned and followed it along the tunnel until he came to a split in the path.

He looked to his right and found a room at the end of the tunnel, dark and filled with boxes. He turned left and there sitting at the end of the tunnel by a dead end was a little girl.

She was thin and pushing back the possibility that she had been there for a long time, Ronon moved towards her. He dug into his pocket thankful that he’d snatched the food bar from Rodney when the Wraith had shown up and unwrapped it.

Before he could move closer again and hold out the bar she was on her feet standing unsteady in the curved tunnel and moving quickly towards him. Her little arms reached out and he couldn’t protest quickly enough as her arms wrapped around his neck and her head rested on his shoulder.

Footsteps nearby turned his attention and he gripped her around the waist and pulled her from the floor. He ducked past the tunnel entrance from where he’d come and moved to the room of boxes.

He pushed a stack aside and yanked open the door and took off down the hallway. He could hear them shouting to each other, they had seen him, but he ignored them, keeping his pace and a tight grip on the child in his arm he rounded a few corners and stepped out into the open air.

Almost instantly the jumper uncloaked in front of him, it’s back to him and the hatch wide open. He ran inside and thumped the door key to close the back and dropped into a seat with the girl.

“Something you wanna share, Ronon?” John asked as he settled the child on his lap and released his grip on the food bar as she tried to take it from him.

“Is that mine?” Rodney asked eyeing the bar as she took a bite.

“She was in the city,” he said ignoring Rodney as he muttered about her having her grubby hands on his food. He shifted and put her down on the bench beside him, she stayed quiet sat there munching on the bar until he got up.

She sobbed and started to cry again and he turned back to see her sitting with her arms up towards him. She carried on crying wailing loudly her green eyes fixed on him.

“Oh that’s just great,” Rodney complained, “not only does she get my food, but she’s gonna cry the whole way home.”

“We don’t know how long she was there,” Ronon snapped at the man as Teyla moved towards her and picked her up. She screamed and started to kick at her still stretching her arms in his direction and dropping the bar to the ground.

“Ronon,” Teyla said gasping for air as she was kicked in the gut, “she seems to want to be with you.”

“I’m not good with kids,” he said in slight protest and walked towards the front of the jumper and dropped into the chair next to John.

“Oh now that’s just a waste of food,” he heard Rodney shout from the back.

“Maybe you should...”

“I don’t do well with children,” he snapped giving John his best glare. “Teyla can handle her.”

He could hear Teyla behind him, talking to the girl in a soothing voice that seemed to be failing her as it made her scream louder.

“Rodney,” John called, “switch with me.”

They traded places and Ronon expected John to go back to see to the child, he knew the man had a way with kids, he’d seen him with the Athosians. But instead of turning away from the cockpit John grabbed him by the shoulder and dragged him to the back before shutting the door between the two compartments.

Ronon was forced into the chair and he settled his eyes on the struggling girl who had both feet on the ground and was struggling against Teyla to get to him.

“Let her go Teyla,” he ordered and he watched as her fingers released the girl. 

She moved quickly towards him and stopped between his feet her arms up to him; she was breathing hard from her exertion and whimpered at him. Ronon watched her for a moment taking in her tangled brown hair and bright green eyes; there was something about them that seemed familiar.

“Pick her up,” John said calmly. “Just sit with her on your lap until we can find someone else she’ll sit with.”

Ronon reached out and pulled her harshly into his lap, he didn’t like this, not one bit, but he couldn’t help but look down as her fingers tightened in his shirt and rested her cheek against his chest.

“When we get back to Atlantis, take her to the infirmary, I’ll go talk to Elizabeth.”

~~**~~**~~

Elizabeth Weir stood on the catwalk gazing out over the gate room, she loved standing here, watching over the quiet movements of the people below. What she didn’t like was when one of her teams came back early and took away her nice solitary quiet moment, the lights on the gate activated and she turned her head towards the control room.

“Incoming wormhole,” Chuck announced.

“Who is it,’ Elizabeth asks moving into the room and behind the safety of the blast glass.

“Colonel Sheppard’s team.”

They weren’t due back for another six hours; she thought with a creased brow and patted him on the shoulder as she spoke.

“Let them in.”

The shield was lowered and she watched the puddle jumper come through followed by Wraith weapons fire. The blue flashes of lights dented the walls and she ducked involuntarily as one flashed against the glass leaving a blackened smear. She didn’t need to order the shield back up. 

“Couldn’t their missions ever go without someone firing at them?” Elizabeth sighed and turned to head back to her office to pick up her radio.

Before she could move out of her office and towards the stairs up to the jumper bay John stepped in front of her.

“Hello,” he said cheerfully. She quirked a brow, “Just a little Wraith problem, they seemed to know Ronon was there.”

“Did everyone get back alright?” she asked.

“Well, yes, everyone we brought back was just peachy,” he said and she couldn’t resist the glare at his well chosen words. “We found a little girl,” he said looking around the control room and then quietly added, “and brought her back with us.”

“What do you mean you found a little girl and brought her back with you,” Elizabeth asks of John, she never liked the shortened basic version of a mission report.

“We were running toward the puddle jumper,” he said with a shrug, “and we got separated. When we got to the safety of the jumper again the big guy had a little girl with him.”

“Ronon found this girl?” she asked finding it hard to picture the Satedan with a child in his arms, “Where is Ronon?”

“He’s in the infirmary with the girl,” he told her with a smirk, “she won’t let anyone hold her but him and tends to scream,” he paused, “loudly when he tries to put her down.”

Elizabeth tried to keep her face neutral as she wanted to laugh at the image that this brought up.

“Well, I think I should meet this new woman in Ronon’s life.”

The two of them headed toward the infirmary and John had to admit that the sight of his friend with any child was amusing. The thought of him with his own child was as easy to imagine as him dating, say, Elizabeth.

When they entered the infirmary Elizabeth saw for herself this little girl they’d brought back. She was a beautiful child, perhaps about two years old, had light mocha skin similar in shade to Ronon’s and long dark brown hair that was tangled. The girl had her face buried in Ronon shirt, but she could see the piercing green eyes that currently watched Carson.

“Keeping secrets from us Ronon?” Elizabeth asked with a grin.

She tried not to laugh at the look on Ronon’s face. He had once told her that he was no good with kids and could never imagine himself as a father.

“I’ve taken a blood sample,” Carson said coming to stand beside Elizabeth, “we need to make sure she’s healthy, but until she’ll let Ronon put her down, I can’t get a scan.”

“Does she have a name?”

“She hasn’t said anything since I picked her up,” Ronon said speaking up, “just cried a lot.”

“Did you ask her?”

Ronon looked from Elizabeth to the girl and back at Elizabeth. She could tell the thought never occurred to him. He poked her in the back to get her attention and asked the simplest of questions.

“You got a name?”

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. At the best of times she knew most men didn’t know how to handle children, but this was twice as bad. The girl’s response was something she didn’t really expect.

“Hey,” Ronon said suddenly in protest as she poked him in the gut. He poked her again, this time in the side and she let out a high pitched giggle and squirmed away from him.

Elizabeth couldn’t help but smile and fold her lips tightly together to stop from laughing, she knew what would follow. Her little hand came up and quickly attacked Ronon’s side, she watched in amusement and the girl, shaking with laughter attempted to tickle the large man she was sitting with.

Ronon gripped her arm sharply and she let out a small sound of pain. Elizabeth moved forward quickly as she started to cry again. Wide green eyes fixed on her face as Ronon let her go and she turned unexpectedly away from him and flung herself towards Elizabeth.

Quickly, Elizabeth managed to catch her before she hit the floor and pulled her up into her arms. The girl stopped crying as she wrapped her arms and legs around Elizabeth.

“Good,” Ronon snarled and jumped off the bed, “you can have her.”

“Ronon,” she called, she didn’t have time to sit in the infirmary with a two or three year old girl. She sighed in frustration and moved towards the bed he had evacuated.

John stepped up beside her and helped her onto the bed, or at least he tried to as the child in her arms attempted to push him away.

“No,” she shouted at him as Elizabeth wiggled further back onto the bed.

“Hey,” she said calmly, “enough of that,” she adjusted the girl in her arms to sit her across her lap and the girl gave a sharp kick at John’s stomach. “Stop that,” Elizabeth said firmly. She stilled, and John took a step back only to be replaced by Carson.

“Teyla’s gone to the mainland to get her some new clothes,” John said, “I’ll go see if she’s back yet,” he turned and left quickly and Elizabeth knew he was really going to find Ronon.

She ignored this thought and looked down at the little face as a small hand came up and planted itself on her cheek. She had the feeling, as it moved across to her nose and up to her eyes, that she was being compared to something.

“She did that to Ronon,” Carson said watching the girl. He seemed to come out of his thoughts as Elizabeth turned to look at him. “I couldn’t get a good look at her and as I’ve said, I haven’t managed to get scans yet, but she seems unharmed. There are no visible cuts from what I can see; her clothes are more old and worn than tattered. I’m a little worried she might be malnourished, but I can’t tell that until I get her scanned.”

“What’s the problem with getting her scanned?”

“She wouldn’t leave Ronon and I doubt very much she’ll leave you.”

“Can I stand with her?” Elizabeth asked slightly muffled as little fingers tried to pin her lips together. Playfully Elizabeth slipped her tongue between her lips and it came in contact with the girl’s hand. She watched with a smile as her little nose screwed up and she wiped her hand on her dress.

“If you think you can get her to lay still with you nearby,” Carson offered indicating in the direction of the scanner with a smile as the girl once again attempted to seal Elizabeth’s mouth shut.

Elizabeth slipped a hand under the child’s legs as she got up and carried her over to the scanner bed. With the movement, her lips were released and she watched out the corner of her eyes as the girl looked around.

As she sat her on the bed under the scanner she took a tight hold of Elizabeth’s shirt and whimpered a barely audible ‘no’.

“I’m not going far,” she said softly, “I’ll be right there,” she pointed to a spot just to her left and watched the bright green eyes in front of her flick to the spot.

“No,” she said a little loudly dragging the word out to sound like a whimpered plea.

Elizabeth crouched down and looked up at her, instantly this was a bad idea, the grip the child had on her shirt didn’t relax and she felt the top slip up slightly and bare her stomach to the infirmary.

“Tell me your name,” she asked with a smile purposely keeping her expression friendly and calm.

“Jadin,” she said quietly.

“Jadin,” Elizabeth repeated, “that’s a beautiful name,” she wet her lips, “Jadin, my name is Elizabeth and I’ll be right here waiting okay?”

“No,” she said dropping Elizabeth’s top and took a fresh hold of her shoulder. “Mommy,” she said firmly.

Elizabeth’s brows creased together as she looked at the green eyes in front of her, there was something about the way she said the word. It wasn’t a question or a request. It was a statement.

“Ok,” Elizabeth said quietly, “will you let Carson,” she pointed to the doctor, “do his scan while mommy stands just over there?” she pointed back to the spot and watched the questioning look on Jadin’s face. Eventually she nodded. “Good girl,” Elizabeth offered, “lie back on the bed, it won’t hurt and you can come back to me when he’s done okay.”

Another nod and Jadin dropped back onto the bed and let the nurse straighten her dress. Elizabeth studied her throughout the scan, green eyes and a cute button nose, her dark skin was completely unlike her own, but her long brown hair had curls amongst the tatters.

Who was this child?

~~**~~**~~

“Ronon,” Ronon could hear John running to catch up with him and quickly ducked into a transporter he turned to face John in the hopes of watching him miss the location but he was closer than expected and managed to slip in through the door.

“I don’t want to have anything to do with her,” he said firmly. “I’m no good with kids.”

“I get that, but so far, there are only two people in this city she’ll respond to and like it or not Elizabeth doesn’t have the time to look after her.”

“And what exactly am I supposed to do with...” he didn’t finish, instead used his hands to indicate something a lot smaller than he was.

“Look,” John said as Ronon turned out of the transporter and moved along the corridor, “I’m not expecting you to take her completely under your wing,” he said walking quickly to keep with Ronon’s pace and long strides. “Just help Elizabeth, let her teach you how to take care of the girl.”

Ronon stopped, there were several things wrong with this. Firstly, the last time he’d been around a child she had died in his arms, he had waited too long to leave the hospital on Sateda with her. If he had gotten her to safety she could have been saved.

Secondly, he was never around children, he hadn’t known how to act around them or look after them even before the war. Now he had spent too long closed off, he was barely opening up to these people let alone a kid.

Then there was Elizabeth, Doctor Weir, he corrected in his head. In his first year here, he hadn’t liked her much, found her condescending and felt as if she always looked down on him... in the metaphorical sense. But of the last few years his feelings towards her had changed.

Two years ago, when she had let a team come after him on Sateda, he had gone back to the city and found her waiting. Waiting for him. She visited him several times in the infirmary while he was stuck there and often brought him things to keep him occupied.

Since then he had found himself watching her whenever he could, small snippets of time standing in the control room looking through the glass of her office. Meetings were the hardest, he found it hard to sit there and not study her features.

“I’ll think about it,” he said quickly, he had realised that the thoughts of her were starting a reaction he had spent two years fighting. He turned and vanished into his room shutting the door quickly behind him. He didn’t want to get involved with a child; he just couldn’t imagine himself as a parent. Although he had frequently pictured Elizabeth with a baby in her arms.

He sighed and dropped onto the bed, Sheppard was right, she didn’t have the time to look after some random mini-person he’d found on another world and just dumped on her. She was the leader of a whole city and had a million and one other things she could be doing right now.

How could he possibly help with a girl, a child, he could barely sit long enough in a room with Elizabeth to hear a mission briefing.

~~**~~**~~

Teyla rounded the corner and stepped into the infirmary. Her eyes roamed the room and took in the people milling around, there was no sign of Ronon or the child and it made her wonder what had transpired in her absence.

“Teyla,” Carson said with a smile as he approached.

“I was looking for Ronon and the child,” she offered smiling back at him.

“Jadin,” he said making sure she understood it was the girl’s name, “is with Elizabeth back in her quarters.”

“With Elizabeth,” she repeated slowly and with a raised eyebrow.

“Ay, Ronon got a little too physical with her and she clung to Elizabeth instead,” he chuckled, “insisted that she was mommy.”

Teyla smiled picturing Elizabeth for a moment as a mother, it was easy to do, the woman had a natural talent for handling children; she had proved it many times with Rodney, John and even Radek on occasion.

“Thank you Carson,” she said and turned and made her way out.

She rang the chime at Elizabeth’s door and listened. It was oddly quiet inside the room and for a moment she considered that Elizabeth had gone somewhere else. The door opened and Teyla found Elizabeth dressed in jeans and a white t-shirt instead of her uniform.

“Tell me you brought back something to keep her occupied,” she asked moving away from the door and back into the room to quickly catch Jadin from grabbing something from her desk.

The laugh that the girl let out as Elizabeth scooped her up was infectious and Teyla couldn’t help but smile.

“I brought back several things that would be of use,” she said “I went to the infirmary to ask where they should be taken.”

“Here,” Elizabeth said putting Jadin on the bed. “Now that Teyla has brought you new clothes, we can get you washed and get those horrible knots out of your pretty hair.”

Teyla moved into the room and sat down on the chair watching as Jadin reached her arms over her head and screwed up her nose. Elizabeth stood up as Teyla reached for her radio and walked towards the bathroom.

“Major Lorne,” she said watching Jadin climb across the bed and follow Elizabeth, “could you bring the supplies for the child to Doctor Weir’s room.” 

“We’re on our way,” he replied.

“Teyla,” Elizabeth called from the bathroom, “could you bring the spare brush from my desk drawer?”

Teyla moved to the desk and drew the top drawer open and found the small rounded brush sitting on top of several books. She picked it up and moved into the bathroom, as soon as she stepped in Jadin reached for Elizabeth almost knocking the woman over from her crouched position.

“Awww, you can trust Teyla, she’s friendlier than big mean Ronon.”

Teyla couldn’t help the smile as she handed Elizabeth the brush. As Jadin took in Teyla she couldn’t help but wonder why the child had been left on the planet. Jadin stopped all of Elizabeth’s attempts to brush her hair out until Teyla sat down beside her.

“Would you prefer me to do your hair?” she asked. Elizabeth handed over the brush without waiting for Jadin to answer and sat the girl on the closed toilet seat.

“Mommy,” Jadin said shyly as Elizabeth moved away.

“I’m just going to start the bath,” the leader said and stood up.

“Elizabeth,” Teyla said taking a patch of Jadin’s hair and easing the brush through it slowly from the bottom, “there was nothing on the planet worth finding.”

“I’ve had the same thought you have,” she said activating the control to run the bath. “They wanted someone to find Jadin,” she said sticking her hand under the water flow to check the set temperature.

“Why would the Genii wish us to find a child?” Teyla looked out into the main room as Lorne and several airmen placed bags of things down and two carried in the crib she had managed to get for Jadin to sleep in.

“I don’t know,” Elizabeth said moving to the other end of the room, “the tip wasn’t from Ladon, and he would have just told us about her, which means this is the other faction of the Genii. And I don’t like that thought at all.”

“Ma’am,” Lorne said stepping in as Teyla turned her eyes back to Jadin’s hair and Elizabeth took a towel from the cupboard. “Anything else I can get for you?” he asked his eyes landing on the girl that seemed to be the talk of the city.

“No, thank you Major.”

“If she were a Genii child they would not be so eager to give her up.”

“She would be better cared for too,” Elizabeth pointed out.

“Is she injured?” Teyla asked having managed to straighten half her hair as she fiddled with the material of Teyla’s skirt.

“No, slightly malnourished, but unharmed. Carson’s checking her DNA,” the water shut off as she finished the sentence. Teyla finished with her hair moments later and looked up as Jadin rubbed at her eyes. “I haven’t even thought about where she’ll sleep.”

“I have already brought a bed back for her,” Teyla offered and Elizabeth looked relieved. “I will get it ready while you bathe her.”

~~**~~**~~

Carson was seeing things, he had to be. He had thought it crazy when Elizabeth had asked him to test her DNA against Jadin’s. He hadn’t confirmed that line of thinking just yet; instead he had found something else.

He rubbed at his eyes and looked at the screen again hoping his eyes and not his mind were playing tricks on him.

“Dena,” he called turning to spot the doctor who had come to take over for him in the infirmary for the night, “can you take a look at this?”

“Sure,” she said joining him at the screen and looking over his shoulder. “Is that Ronon’s DNA?” she asked.

“Why do you ask that?”

“Satedan cells,” she said pointing out the obvious and somewhat different cells that the Satedan’s had.

“Aye,” Carson said, “that’s what I was afraid of,” she gave him a confused look. “The sample is the young lady Ronon brought back from their last mission,” he explained, “I was about to compare her sample to a few on record when I spotted those particular cells.”

“Well if she’s Satedan maybe we could find her parents in the Belkan village,” Carson didn’t listen, instead he started his comparisons. “Assuming of course she’ll move away from Doctor Weir or...”

Before she could finish her sentence the comparison was completed.

“Oh god,” Carson sighed. “She’s Ronon’s child.”

“That’s impossible,” Dena said watching as Carson started a comparison with another person. She glanced at the name ‘Elizabeth Weir’ at the bottom of the screen and creased her brow. Carson saw her confusion and hoped this wasn’t about to say ‘positive’.

His head dropped as the comparison finished, there was no way he was going to be able to explain this.

“How?” was all Dena managed to ask as she continued to stare at the screen. “How can she be Ronon and Elizabeth’s child?”

“That’s a very good question.”

~~**~~**~~

Ronon pushed off his bed and moved to the door, he wanted to do it, step out of the room walk the corridors to Doctor Weir’s room and offer to help. But he couldn’t bring himself to do it, was the fact that she didn’t have time to take care of her alone enough for him.

He crossed the room, pulled off his shirt and dropped it into the washing hamper. He turned back to face the bed before swinging back around and pulling the shirt out again and yanking it over his head.

It didn’t matter, he thought as he stepped into the hall and turned towards hers, if he did it because she was the leader, or because John had returned and tried to make it an order. He couldn’t get the girl’s green eyes out of his head; they were driving him crazy, so familiar and so different at the same time.

He paused outside the door, thinking about the times he’s been caught in the gaze or glare of the Atlantis leader. Powerful, dangerous and alluring all at the same time.

He turned and walked away, moving to the window that stood tall at the end of the corridor. It wasn’t his fear of not knowing what to do that was pushing him to try and avoid this, he realised; it was Elizabeth.

He turned and looked back at her door and determination washed over him. He’d never run away from anything, except the Wraith, but he only ever ran from them to find the right place to turn and kill them.

He pushed off from the window and moved back to Elizabeth’s door; this couldn’t be that hard, could it? Knock, offer to help, let her know she has to teach him how and see where it goes.

His hand came up, lingered for a moment over the door chime. He forced his hand forward and heard the chime ring through the room beyond. He waited, his head dropped and he considered that this was a little too late at night to be doing this.

The door opened and her feet appeared in his view, bare and only blocked from sight by the flow of her long robe. He followed the pale green robe up to the tie and then along the edges of the “v” that opened over her chest. The soft material beneath it caught his attention for a moment.

“Ronon?” she asked and his eyes flew to her face, she didn’t look as though he had interrupted her sleep, but the tiredness in her voice was clear.

“I wanted to apologize,” he said to quietly. “I shouldn’t have just dumped the kid on you.”

“Jadin,” Elizabeth said becoming slightly annoyed that people just referred to her as ‘her’ or ‘the girl’. “Sorry,” she added realising that he wasn’t comfortable with this to begin with.

She stepped aside and Ronon’s heart rate sped up, he swallowed hard before stepping past her and into the room. His eyes quickly scanned the setting, the small sitting room was neat, her desk, much like the one in her office was scattered with decorative ornaments.

He turned to look into the bedroom, her bed sheets were ruffled and a book lay face down and opened on the bedside. He had interrupted her reading. Small clothes were scattered across the sofa just inside the room and a bag lay unopened beside it. His eyes caught sight of the barred bed and the small girl laying face down in it and covered to her neck with a white blanket.

“She insisted on picking her own night clothes,” Elizabeth said as she passed him and moved to clear the mess from the sofa. Deciding this would be a good place to start Ronon moved to the sofa and started to help clear up. He picked up a small brown dress and examined the simple sewn in flowers that lined the bottom.

“I will never get used to the size of these things,” he said and caught Elizabeth’s attempt not to laugh.

“Teyla brought back a whole bag of clothes for her and another full of toys,” she said indicating the other bag, “and the bed.”

“Handy,” he said turning back and picking up several more items of clothing before following her over to a small cupboard.

They piled them neatly on one of the shelves before turning back to the room. Ronon moved away from her, crossing the bedroom to stand over Jadin’s bed. Her peaceful face was turned in his direction and her hands were fisted on either side of her head.

“I wanna help,” he said, “I wouldn’t know how to look after her on my own, but I can learn to at least help you.”

“Thank you,” she said and he turned to find her watching him. She looked away slightly embarrassed and Ronon opened his mouth to say something else when the door chime rang again.

Quickly Elizabeth walked to the door. Ronon turned back to the crib and watched Jadin shift in her slightly disturbed sleep. She turned her head away, sighed and went back to sleep.

He looked up when Elizabeth returned and smiled at Carson. It was a moment before he realised that the doctor didn’t return the smile.

“Well,” Carson said nodding to Ronon, “at least I’ll only have to say this once. As you requested, I checked her DNA for abnormalities and compared it to yours,” he explained to Elizabeth.

“Why did you have it compared to your DNA?” Ronon asked completely confused.

“She’s insistent that I’m mommy,” Elizabeth said, “when she started to examine my face I felt as if she was comparing me to something in her memory, something she’d seen.”

“Like a photograph?” Ronon questioned and she nodded.

“Yes well,” Carson said bringing them back on topic, “it was a match.”

“Wait,” Ronon said, “how can she be Weir’s daughter?”

“I don’t know,” Carson said and Ronon turned to look at Elizabeth for an explanation only to find her easing her shocked body back onto her bed. “That’s not all,” Carson continued, “I discovered something in her DNA first. She has Satedan DNA cells.”

“Satedan?” Ronon’s head snapped back to Carson as he repeated the word as if it was a foreign object.

“Ay,” Carson said shifting uncomfortably. “I got a positive match against your DNA,” he said. Ronon turned to face him completely not sure he was understanding what the doctor was telling him. “You’re both that girl’s parents.”

~~**~~**~~

Silence, for the last three years, silence was something Ronon had learned he didn’t need to keep or live by. Silence had served to be a reminder of a life he no longer wanted or had to be associated with. Now however it filled the room with a thick air that settled heavily on his shoulders.

Carson had excused himself a good ten minutes ago and he and Elizabeth were left alone with the knowledge that the two year old child sleeping in the room was their child.

Ronon never kidded himself about children, he could never picture himself holding a baby or having his own child. But he could imagine himself holding the growing belly of a woman he loved while his unborn child shifted inside.

This however was nothing like that. He and Elizabeth barely stepped from the professional relationship they had into friendship, now suddenly they had a two year old daughter together.

She was sitting at the end of the bed, her eyes fixed on the infant in the bed opposite. Her jaw was tight as she sat stiffly on the bed. She hadn’t moved since Carson has left and it was starting to add to the tension in the room.

He kept his seat on the sofa and couldn’t look away from her. He didn’t want a daughter, well he did, just not like this, but he did want her.

Right now he’d settle for her moving, sobbing, crying, screaming, anything that wasn’t the rigid position she currently held. He thought about starting it, getting up and moving to sit next to her on the bed. Likewise he’d thought about leaving, stepping out of the room going to the gym to see if he could rip the life out of the punching bag.

The only thing that kept him in his seat was that he couldn’t just leave her to deal with this alone. When she did react to the information it was either going to be anger or fear that came through and he didn’t want to let her go through that alone.

“The nuke,” she said barely above a whisper.

“What?”

“At the end of our first year,” she said and he watched her throat as she swallowed, “a few months before you arrived, I went to the Genii home world to negotiate for a nuclear bomb to destroy the Wraith.”

“That was almost four years ago,” he pointed out.

She turned to face him and he saw the tears that she was fighting off. He wanted to look away from her but couldn’t bring himself to let her know he’d noticed in the half light.

“That was the last time I had contact with the Genii and I know they took blood and DNA samples from me before they let me into the negotiation,” she snorted derisively, “if you can call that a negotiation.”

“What about all the meetings with Radim?”

“He never got nearer than a handshake and you, John or Lorne were there at all times.”

He nodded, she had a point; there was no mistaking the possibility that this had everything to do with the Genii. They had led them to the planet, probably informed the Wraith they would be there and it was extremely possible they had left the little one there to be found.

“Lucius Lavin,” Ronon offered after a short silence, “when he was being a superhero. We were imprisoned by several Genii who shortly after returned home. They had good fun yanking on my hair when their bosses weren’t around.”

Silence fell again. Obviously she wasn’t feeling too awkward with the situation, perhaps just confused. After a moment she moved, her hands coming up to her stomach and the ties on the front of her robe were undone.

She slipped it off her shoulders leaving her in nothing but a slip of a night dress, the white silk shimmered in the light and Ronon felt his body react to the sight of it. Her shoulders held only thin straps of the material that hung loosely and as she pushed the robe away the one closest to him slid down off her shoulder.

Her hand came up to push it back before she got up and dropped it onto the chair next to Jadin’s bed. He watched her lean over the lowest side of the crib’s bars and run her fingers across Jadin’s cheek.

“We need to work out how we’re gonna deal with this,” she said at last and he drew his eyes from the edge of her dress that stopped at her thighs and looked at her face. “But maybe we should wait until morning.”

“Yeah,” he said, “it’s late.”

He got to his feet and turned to the door but had to pause and look back at her, she was still leaning over the crib looking at Jadin. Ronon turned back and crossed the room and stopped beside her. His hand on her shoulder made her jump and she turned to look at him.

“You gonna be okay?”

She only nodded at him and then dropped her head to avoid looking him in the eye. It dawned on him that she became very aware of what she was now wearing, but he didn’t mind, or care at the moment. He used the hand on her shoulder to lead her away from the child.

“You need to sleep,” he said turning her back to the bed and pushing her down onto it, “I’m not leaving until I know you will.”

“I will,” she said.

“I don’t believe you,” he said, “I know how you cope with confusing situations and danger, and this fits into those categories.”

She sighed and gave in. He eased her back onto the bed and pulled the covers back over her before he sat down on the sofa facing her.

~~**~~**~~

The door chime woke John from his slumber, he pried an eye open and looked around taking in the amount of light in the room. It was morning, early morning by the looks of it.

The door chime rang again and John got up and moved to the door. He leaned against the frame and activated the panel to let in whoever was on the other side it.

“Colonel,” Carson greeted and John nodded before rubbing his hand down his face. “I was hoping you wouldn’t answer.”

“Why?” he said moving back into his room and letting Carson in.

“Then I’d have a fair idea where Ronon is,” he said, “I went looking for him this morning to get a fresh blood sample, but he wasn’t in his room.”

“Maybe he got up early and went for a run.”

“Ay,” Carson said nodding, “I thought of that, but he’s not answering his radio. I’m a little concerned.”

“Why?” John asked again elongating the word.

Even through his half asleep daze, John could see the uncomfortable feeling that washed over the doctor. Carson shifted on the spot and looked around the room.

“Carson?”

“I...” he paused. John wondered if he was debating telling the information or how to word it. “I discovered why she liked Ronon so much,” he said, “well half of the reason anyway.”

John stood up and moved to stand directly in front of the man. He knew it was intimidating, but he needed to know what about Ronon had worried the man in the first place.

“Jadin is Ronon’s daughter,” he offered quietly. John ran the hand over his face again, Ronon as a father was going to be a complicated matter in itself, until Carson added “and Elizabeth is her mother.”

“You told Ronon this?”

“I told them both,” he said, “I thought they should know.”

“When exactly did you tell them?”

“Last night,” he said, “I went to Elizabeth’s room to tell her and Ronon was there.”

John grabbed his pants and quickly shoved his leg into them. He pulled them up and grabbed his t-shirt before heading out into the corridor.

“Did you check on Elizabeth?” he asked as he pulled his shirt over his head. Silence followed and Carson feel instep beside him, he could guess the answer was no and they both now had a destination in mind.

John didn’t stop at her door to knock, he just stepped in and took in the room in the morning hew. Elizabeth was fast asleep in bed; she didn’t even stir as they entered. Jadin’s crib was empty and it wasn’t until he turned to his right that he saw Ronon.

“Sheppard,” he said quietly and then glanced at Elizabeth. He was sitting on the floor, his legs crossed in front of him. Jadin sat between him and Elizabeth’s bed, a few Athosian toys scattered around her and one in her hand that she was intently examining.

“Did you stay here all night?” John asked and was shocked when Jadin turned her green eyes on him and shushed him.

“I wouldn’t leave until she was asleep,” he said quietly indicating Elizabeth. “Guess I fell asleep on the sofa.”

A ball Jadin had started playing with rolled off to the side and vanished under Elizabeth’s bed. John watched for a moment as Jadin turned and flattened herself on the floor to find it. She shimmed forward on her stomach to retrieve it and Ronon grabbed her ankles and tugged her playfully back.

She laughed and Ronon shushed her quickly as Elizabeth stirred. John turned and headed back to the door, so far they both seemed fine.

“Ronon,” Carson said taking a single step backwards towards the door, “when you get a moment could you come give me another blood sample?”

“Sure,” he said letting Jadin move back to the bed to get her ball. “Sheppard?” John waited for Carson to leave the room and turned back to watch Ronon pull a giggling Jadin out from under the bed with the ball in hand. “We need time to work this out,” he said sitting her on the sofa and moving over to talk to him.

John watched Jadin for a moment, she crawled off the sofa leaving the ball behind and the sun caught her skin as she moved across the floor and attempted to get onto the bed with Elizabeth.

“I’ll keep command until you’ve...” he indicated Jadin who moved along the bed trying to find a place to climb up.

“Thanks,” he said turning back to see what was keeping John’s interest. John smiled as he playfully scooped the girl up and turned to head out.

~~**~~**~~

She could hear the noise as she drifted out of sleep and back to reality. It took her a moment to fix on the sound of her two year old daughter muttering low. She assumed that she was speaking to herself, muttering as she played with something in her cot.

It wasn’t until a familiar and deep rumble of a voice joined the child’s that Elizabeth realised she was speaking with someone. She opened her eyes and looked around the room; she was facing the bathroom but soon turned onto her back and looked down her body to the crib at the foot of her bed. 

It was empty, the sheets and blanket ruffled or piled at the end. She turned to the other side and found Ronon standing mostly hidden by a cupboard door. The simple wood cupboard the Athosians had made for her stood beside her door and next to the sofa she had last seen Ronon sitting on.

He stood now practically inside, the door pulled almost closed against his back. Jadin’s dark curls were seen over his shoulder and her foot swung into view every so often. As she watched, a small shirt flew into view and flittered down to the floor.

“Hey,” Ronon said clearly and Elizabeth guessed he had started to tickle her as she started to giggle and soon screech with laughter. 

Moments later he started to shush her and glanced over his shoulder, the hue of the morning seemed to mask that she was awake as he didn’t notice, without so much as a second look he turned back to the cupboard.

“You’re gonna pick that up,” he muttered low.

“Am not,” she said playfully and Elizabeth watched as Ronon dropped a set of clothing on the sofa.

“Oh yes you are,” he turned around quickly dropped her to hang upside down from the waist. Jadin giggled and attempted to straighten up, but Ronon wouldn’t have it. “Pick it up.”

“I don’t like it,” she squealed.

“We’ll put it at the back so it gets forgotten then, but leaving it on the floor will only bring attention to it.”

She gave a short laugh and Ronon pulled her back up, turned and opened the cupboard. They rummaged for a moment before they turned away. Ronon looked her way again and Elizabeth quickly closed her eyes to feign sleep. He didn’t say anything to her, so she assumed he hadn’t noticed.

“Let’s get you dressed, so you can go with Teyla to the mainland and play with the other kids for a few hours.”

“You coming with me?”

“No, mommy and I need to talk,” he said, “but you can trust everyone here, everyone works for your mom.”

“I don’t want to go,” Jadin said sounding slightly tearful. Elizabeth chanced a glance at them as Ronon pulled Jadin’s t-shirt on.

“Only for a few hours,” he said, “if you don’t like playing with the other kids, you don’t have to go again. Okay?”

Jadin nodded. They finished dressing and Ronon pulled the small girl into his lap and sat watching her, Elizabeth couldn’t help but watch him as he picked up a small bear from beside him and gave it to her. His fingers came up as she accepted the toy and he brushed a few strands of soft curls away from her cheek. 

“You’ve got your mother’s beauty,” he said in a low growl. Jadin didn’t look at him she continued to examine the bear. He tilted her chin slightly and Elizabeth saw Jadin steal a glance at him. “Someone could get lost in those eyes,” he added with a smile, “the boy’s are gonna chase you when you grow up. I’m gonna have to introduce them to the barrel of my gun.”

His thoughts were cut off by the door chime and he picked her up and carried her to the door. Choked by what she’d just heard Elizabeth moved quickly, climbing from the bed and vanishing into the bathroom. She stood with her back to the door attempting to take in his words.

She’d already thought about the girl as a teenager, all the Athosian boys trying to get her attention with her deep skin tone, beautiful green eyes and slightly pouting lips. But it wasn’t this information she clung to.

 _“You’ve got your mother’s beauty,”_ his words reverberated through her head like the ringing of a bell. He thought she was beautiful.

All the nights she’d dreamed of him, woke thinking about his hands caressing her body, moulding her breasts and dipping into her slick pussy and he was a few corridors away thinking about her beauty?

She could kick herself. She closed her eyes and shivered. Had he meant it? Had he thought it all along or was he only seeing now through their daughter? She had to find out.

She glanced into the mirror and gasped at her morning hair and ruffled clothing. She couldn’t go back out there looking like this; a complete mess wouldn’t be a good start. She straightened the silk chemise and moved over to the sink. Hastily she washed her face to remove the sleep from her eyes and rinsed her mouth with the peppermint mouthwash before running her fingers through her hair to straighten it.

Ronon was picking up the toys when she stepped back into the room, he turned only to give her a small smile before he stuffed the objects back into the bag.

“Teyla wake you up?” he asked when he’d finished and turned to look at her. She could only shake her head at the moment and watch as he dropped back onto the sofa. “Sheppard’s watching command so we can work this out,” he said indicating the small bed next to Elizabeth.

“What time did you get here?”

“I never left,” he said with a smile, “guess I fell asleep waiting for you to drift off,” he gave a shrug. Silence filled the room and out of need to relieve the uncomfortable sensation Elizabeth turned and started to rearrange the bedding in Jadin’s crib.

She paused after a moment and dropped her head. Her grip on the railing of the cot tightened as she considered what she wanted to say. She heard him move from the sofa before she took a deep breath.

“I always imagined that if I got to have a child of my own,” she stopped to smile, “that I’d get the fun of making it and the experience of carrying it. It’s a little strange to just,” she sighed, “to just find myself a mother of a two year old.”

“I never expected to be a parent,” he said with a slight air of amusement.

“I want to be her mother,” she said feeling the tear that slid from her left eye, “but I can’t do that alone.”

“That’s why I’m standing here,” he said and she suddenly realised he was standing extremely close. She turned and found him almost directly in front of her; it still forced her to look up. His eyes were searching, looking for something in her eyes that she hoped to god he wouldn’t find. She was only too aware that right now she wanted nothing more than to find out if he really had feelings for her.

His arched brow made her consider if he’d want to start a family and if that answer was yes, would he be willing to have another baby. She had to look away as the sudden want to give Jadin a brother washed over her and she knew Ronon had figured this out as he shifted uncomfortably in front of her.

“She needs both parents,” he said low in his throat, “and you can’t deal with a child on your own,” she nodded in agreement. “I never thought I’d say this,” he offered drawing her eyes back to his face, “but I want to be a dad. I want to be her dad,” he looked away and took a few steps back and dropped down to sit on her bed. “I want,” he paused again hesitating on the edge of his statement. “I want to know what it would be like to start from day one, hold a new born baby in my arms,” he held his arms out as if imagining the baby there.

Her breathing hitched as she watched him, listening intently to what he said. Something seemed to dawn on him as he sat there and slowly, as if he was considering her body language, he raised his head.

“How long were you awake?” The look she gave him was a cross between fear that she’d heard something and amusement that she was cornered.

“I, erm,” she shifted, suddenly very aware that she had heard a tender moment between him and Jadin that he hadn’t intended her to listen in on. “I woke while you were finding clothes in the closet.”

He gave an involuntary laugh and smiled up at her for just a moment before he looked back at the cupboard in question.

“You saw flying clothes?” She laughed at him and the memory of how he’d made her pick up the article she didn’t want. “She doesn’t like that one; it’s the grey shirt sitting at the back.”

The uncomfortable silence settled again and Elizabeth turned her head to look around the room for something to do. Occupying her body would take away the unsettling feeling growing in the pit of her stomach. She didn’t get the chance to find something before Ronon spoke again.

“She does look a lot like you,” he said. She couldn’t help the quirked brow at his admittance; he had just accepted that what he said to Jadin had been overheard. “Your hair,” he paused, “eyes.”

He looked up at her and their gaze locked; she could see the truth of what he’d meant earlier and most shockingly to her, the feeling that produced the words.

Without thinking about it Elizabeth moved forward, stopped in front of him and leaned in and took his lips. He didn’t hesitate, didn’t push her away or move from his seat and she melted her lips against his. His beard scratched at her chin tickling slightly. It was a strange sensation and she knew she would get used to it, but the itch of it was what pulled her away from him.

“Seven years as a runner?” she asked. He nodded in confirmation, “four years in Atlantis,” he nodded again, “that’s eleven years without intimate contact.”

“It’s a long time,” he confirmed as his fingers curled around her hips.

“I have to admire you for it,” she said, “I can bet that any man from earth who went that long would either go crazy, or seek a one night stand.”

“I don’t want just one night,” he said, “or even one any time of the day,” his amendment to their early morning flirt made her laugh. She forced a serious look back onto her face before she replied.

“Neither do I.”

He pulled her in for the second kiss, it shocked her a little to feel the lust and passion he had built up for 11 years. But he gave her all of it, placing as much pressure on her lips as he dared and opening up his entire set of emotions and putting it on display.

Her hands on his shoulders could feel the muscles shift; he was enjoying the small touches a little too much. Not that she minded. She added to the kiss and slowly eased him back on the bed and straddled his waist. He gave a low growl and started to massage her hips, his fingers digging in just enough to drag her lower body down onto his.

The sudden need for air forced her to pull away and she has up over him. Their eyes met and she knew instantly that there was no question about what they were doing. He had wanted this for a long time, longer than she could imagine.

As she watched him his hands drifted down off her hips and slipped along her thighs, she didn’t realise until his hands met the skin about mid way down. As he worked back up the dress shifted and flowed down over his hands to his wrist. She had to suck in a large breath that seemed wholly inadequate for her lungs, in just a minute his hands would be back on her hips, skin on skin under the dress. The tease itself was enough to deprive her of breath, but the thought of what he’d learn was something else.

She never had worn underwear to bed, couldn’t even understand why people did. Now she was semi-thankful for this. His brow arched as his hands passed over her hips and settled on her sides, the look was soon replaced with his mischievous and playful side and he turned his hands moving them over her stomach before letting one of them drop to his stomach.

A moment of curiosity flooded her before she felt the tips of his fingers touch her labia, she jolted at the sudden contact, but soon lifted her hips enough for him to push his fingers in against her lips between their bodies.

He rubbed against her and her hips started to move on their own. It was a moment later that she let out a moan, he’d curled the tip against her clit and the sensation tore through her.

“Ronon,” she breathed arching her back to keep her hips in place and drop her hands to his chest. He continued to tease her, never delving too deeply, it was a while later that he became desperate for more contact and he retracted his hand and took hold of the hem of her dress.

The friction of the silk chemise being dragged slowly up her skin made her claw at his chest, her fingers flexed bunching up his shirt before releasing it. Before he had finished removing it she had reached down and started to undo his pants. She moved, sitting beside him and abandoned his untied pants in favour of removing his shirt.

Ronon didn’t give in so easily, his hands finished removing her dress before he attempted to pull her back over him. He took to running his hands over her skin avoiding her breasts and sex. When she finally managed to push his shirt up high enough, Ronon gave in and rested one hand on her thigh as he sat up.

His shirt gone, Elizabeth pushed him back with a kiss. His hand drifted between her thighs again and she dropped her head to the side of his before starting a trail of kisses down his neck and across his shoulder. She moved down, turning her hips to give him access as she paused to flick her tongue over his nipples before lining kisses and nips down his stomach.

His pants, although undone, were still in place and she pulled her hands from his sides to shove them off his hips. He lifted up to aid her and as soon as she had them past his knees she released them to fall to the ground on their own. She spared a moment to realise he had no shoes on before he dipped a finger into her tunnel and she dropped her head to his stomach.

She could feel the walls of her pussy clenching on his fingers and missed the muttered word he breathed. It took a moment for her to regain herself and managed to lift her head up enough to wrap her hand and lips around his length. He faltered and the hand that had a digit buried inside her retracted only to come down with a sharp snap against her backside.

He gripped her knee and pulled it out from under her, using both hands he positioned her over him and took a firm hold of her hips to force her down against his face. 

His tongue felt wonderful, slipping wet across her lips and tightening to flick at her clit. She squirmed, at first attempting to pull away from the onslaught of pleasure until she had no choice but to give in and chase the orgasm that was building quickly. When he shifted his hands down to her ass and dipped his thumb into her core she let go.

In the past, Elizabeth had been silent when she’d come, always able to hold back from screaming out her lover’s name. But in the past, she’d never felt this close to her partner and never had such an intense orgasm. She fought the boiling in her throat that threatened to erupt loudly; it started as a growl, a low rumble through clenched teeth. As she peaked however she couldn’t help herself, she clenched her thighs around his head and pushed down, her head flew back as she groaned loudly and breathed his name.

As she relaxed she pulled away from, moving down his body. She’d had a good grip on his cock as she’d come and she’d felt it pulse with pleasure. She knew he wouldn’t last long; 11 years without intimate contact would test the stamina of any man.

Keeping her back to him, Elizabeth straddled his hips again and slowly lowered herself down onto his extremely hard, fat length. She leaned forward bracing her hands on his knees as he slipped inside her. His hands grasped tightly to her backside, she could feel his fingers pressing in against her skin.

When she was sat fully on him, she adjusted her hips and pulled her knees forward. She held her breath as she sat fully up and took hold of his wrists; it took a lot of effort to move them from her ass and up to her back. This accomplished she dropped back using his grip to support her back until she was laying flat on her back on top of him.

She flexed her hips and in return Ronon flexed his fingers, adjusting his grip on her before he lifted his hips from the bed. She held her position as he dropped back almost pulling all the way from within her. He thrust back up several times before he relaxed his grip on her before tentatively moving his hands away.

Elizabeth let out the groan as his hands rested on her breasts and he gave her nipples a pinch. His breath in her ear was laboured and sounded almost painful as he forced it out of his chest. He gulped a few times and faltered in his thrusts. He was close, she could feel the vein in his length throbbing inside her, but he seemed to be holding back, fighting for control.

“Let go Ronon,” she breathed hoping to goad him into his release.

“You first,” he said and one of his hands moved from her breast. It was a moment before she figured out where it was heading and then only because his wrist brushed her hip. His fingers brushed against her clit and without realising she was close her climax washed over. She clenched on him, hard, and he instantly moved his hands back to her hips and pushed her off him.

“No,” she breathed afraid he was pulling out so he wouldn’t come inside her. 

Instead of letting her drop onto her back, Ronon pushed her off him and sat up. She took the opportunity to run her eyes down his body. It was a shock to see how large he was so close to his release, long, thick and throbbing in front of her eyes. He took her by the hips and moved her to stand in front of him at the edge of the bed.

“Bend over,” he said struggling with his own voice and she complied and placed her hands on the bed in front of her. Ronon didn’t let her spread her legs, didn’t even let her shift her hips before he dove inside her. His thrusts were hurried and random, but she didn’t care, he felt wonderfully deep inside her like this and she could feel the stirring starting up in the pit of her stomach for the third time this morning.

“Let go,” she breathed, “oh god Ronon, I want to feel you come in me,” she breathed hard and her supporting arms dropped her to the bed. It did the trick this time, Ronon pushed in hard using his hands on her hips to pull her back against him. The heat that rushed through her stomach tilted the switch inside her and she moaned along with him as her own release flooded her senses.

His arms wrapped around her waist and he pulled her around until he could drop onto his side and lift her over him to place her on the bed beside him. He turned with her, keeping his chest against her back and his arms around her as he did so.

They lay together for a while, their harsh, post-coital breathing the only sound that filled the air until Ronon started to place small kisses on her shoulder. She relaxed back against him considering the possible bad outcomes for what they had just done when something dawned on her.

“How did you get Jadin to go to the mainland with Teyla?”

“Easy,” he said sighing against her back and tucked his face in the crook of her neck, “she’s just like her mother, curious to know what’s there.”

“You fed her curiosity,” she said with a small laugh. “I can see daddy’s gonna be a handful in himself.”


End file.
